Welt press



o. JAco-Bus Dehn 24, 1940.

WELT l PRES s Filed July 18, '1940 (j wem/bw Patented Dec. Z4, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WELT PRESS Otto Jacobus, Olean, N. Y. Application July 18, 1940, Serial No. 346,214 's Claims. (o1. 1z-33) This invention relates to a welt press for attaching the sole of a shoe to the welt and upper structure by means of cement. The cementing method has largely supplanted the old practice of sewing or pegging the sole in place, but it is attended with certain difficulties of applying pressure to clamp the sole to the welt along the edge of the former in a smooth and tight fashion without permitting curling or warping of the welt where it is cemented to the sole.

'Ihe object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for doing this work smoothly and conveniently and to make a iirm engagement between the parts, and the apparatus includes or comprises a flat chain which is thin enough to t in the crease between the upper and the welt, to which chain pressure is applied by means of a plurality of clamps or other tensioning devices, which are or may be mounted on the base or support upon which the shoe is placed and which have fingers or parts which press against the chain at a plurality of places along and around the same and press the welt smoothly against the sole along the whole length of the welt, and holds it in this relation until the cement is hardened.

'I'he device may be used either with or without a shoe press. That is an ordinary shoe press may be used to clamp the work to the bed or support if desired, but practically it has been found unnecessary.

'Ihe chain is arranged along around the welt and can be bent to fit the contour or angularity of the welt at all points. The chain is made of small thin metal links pivoted together, and may be provided with barbs to stick into the welt and hold the chain in place.

The flat faces of the links, where they contact with the welt, are level or in the same plane, so that they bear against the welt practically the whole length thereof.

The apparatus may be used or fitted for use on various kinds of shoes, since the chain can be bent according to the shape or outline of the shoe, whether large or small, wide or narrow.

The clamps are also adjustable to suit the work, so as to bear upon the chain in all positions.

With this preliminary explanation, one form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the press;

Figure 2 is a plan view thereof;

Figure 3 is a plan of the chain;

Figure 4 is a detail of the chain in edge view; and

Figure 5 is an edge View of a modified form of chain.

Figure 6 is a detail of a modification.

Referring specifically to the drawing, 6 indiy cates the work or shoe to which the sole l is "5' to be applied, the welt being indicated at The shoe is mounted or rests upon a support such as a rubber pad 9 held within a base frame or box IG. A

The chain is indicated at il, and when the l0 job is set up this chain is fitted upon or in the crease above the welt 8. It will be noted that the chain comprises a series of thin hat links connected by pivots i2, so that it may be bent to conform to the contour or outline of the welt, 15 and it is capable of being adjusted to .fit any shape or size of shoe. Preferably the links which occupy the toe position are shorter than those at the sides so that the chain may be bent to a sharper angle Aaround the toe. Also lthe 20 links are preferably provided with barbs or points i3 which when the chain is applied to the welt penetrate the latter and so hold the chain in position.

The form of chain shown in Figures 3 and 4 25 consists of off-set links, the ends of which lap over and under each other where they are pivoted together, as clearly appears in Figure 4. This gives a sufficiently at surface for the intended purpose, but may be modified in various ways. 30 For example, the chain shown in Figure 5 consists of top and bottom links Ila and Hb which are straight and lap where they are pivoted; together. This gives a pressure surface which is somewhat more continuous than the form 35 shown in Figure 4.

As stated this chain is fitted to and pressed down upon the welt, clamping it against the edge of the sole, and the pressure may be applied by any kind of clamps or pressure devices suitable 40 for the purpose. I have shown clamps arranged around the periphery of the base or supporting block I0, each clamp comprising a bolt l5 extending loosely through a hole in the side wall of the base and carrying an adjustable block 45 It under a wing nut I1, by means of which the pressure is applied. The block I6 is bored vertically to pass the bolt and has an extension I9 which is tapped horizontally to receive a thumb screw i8 extending into the extension I9 on the 50 block to clamp in position an adjustable finger or bar 20, the inner end of which is bent down as indicated at 2| to bear against the upper surface of the chain. It will be understood that the linger 20 may be moved in or out, or the block 55 may be turned, to set the end 2| of the finger in proper position to bear against the top of the chain, and after being set in position the pressure is applied by turning down the wing nut Il against the block I6, carrying the block and finger downwardly to press upon the chain with the necessary pressure to clamp the welt and the edge of the sole together, the rubber pad 9 giving whatever cushion eiect may be necessary.

Obviously other kinds of clamps or tension devices may be used to do the work described, and it will be noticed that by using a plurality of clamps arranged around the chain the latter forces the welt to close contact at all points or places along its length.

In use, after the shoe has been prepared, the link chain is tted upon the welt and is held thereto by the small barbs. Then the cement is applied to the welt and to the sole, and the last is inserted. The shoe is then placed on the base, and without allowing the cement to dry the clamps are applied in the manner described to press the welt against the sole, and the work remains clamped in position until the cement is set. The device can be operated without the help of a shoe press, by simply cementing the sole to the inner sole and then afterwards applying cement between the welt and the edge of the sole and then pressing the same together by the clamps as above described.

As stated the invention is not limited to the details of the apparatus illustrated and described, but various changes may be made Within the scope of the following claims. For example, the nger 20 may be made wider at the inner end, as shown at 20a, to have a longer bearing on the chain.

I claim:

1. A welt press for shoes, comprising a support for the shoe sole, an elongated thin flexible member fitting along upon the welt, and a plurality of pressure clamps arranged around the periphery of said support and having fingers pressing upon said member at spaced points along the same, to press the welt and sole together, said fingers being adjustable both vertically and horizontally to locate the inner ends thereof at any desired points along said ilexible member.

2. A Welt press for shoes, comprising a chain adapted to t upon and along a, welt, and. means to apply pressure to the chain, to press the welt against the sole of the shoe, the chain having projecting barbs for engagement with the welt.

3. A welt press for shoes comprising a base having an elastic pad therein, a series of pressure devices mounted on and around the periphery of the base, and means extending along and upon the welt of a shoe resting upon the pad to re ceive the pressure of said devices to press the welt against the sole of the shoe, each pressure device comprising a bolt projecting upwardly from the base, a block adjustable on the bolt, a nut on the bolt, bearing against the block, and an inwardly projecting nger adjustably mounted on the block and adapted to bear at its inner end against said means.

4. A welt press for shoes, comprising a hollow base having an elastic pad therein, a chain extending along and upon the welt of a shoe resting upon the pad, to press the welt against the sole of the shoe, and a series of separate clamps arranged around the outer side wall of the base, each clamp comprising a screw bolt loosely engaging the base and projecting upwardly above the same, a nut screwed on the upper end of the bolt, a block adjustable on the bolt under the nut, and a linger projecting inwardly from the block and bearing at its inner end upon said chain.

5. A welt press as in claim 4, the finger being adjustable lengthwise in the block.

OTTO JACOBUS. 

